Optoelectronic response of spinels CdX2O4 with X = (Al, Ga, In) through the modified Becke-Johnson functional

Structural, electronic, and optical properties of CdAl2O4, CdGa2O4, and CdIn2O4 are investigated using the first principles technique based on the new potential approximation known as the Tran-Blaha modified Becke-Johnson exchange potential approximation (TB-mBJ). We discuss the improvements in the band gap determination using TB-mBJ compared to the standard generalized gradient approximation in density functional theory. The calculated equilibrium lattice parameters are in reasonable agreement with the experimental results. Electronic properties have been studied through the calculation of band structure and density of states. Based on our electronic structure obtained using the mBJ method, we have calculated various optical properties, including the complex dielectric function epsilon(omega), complex index of refraction n(omega), reflectivity coefficient R(omega), absorption coefficient alpha(omega), and the electron energy-loss function L(omega) as functions of the photon energy. We chose these three representative oxides spinel due to their potential applications in optoelectronics and optical fields. (C) 2014 AIP Publishing LLC.